Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 93984 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93984 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
“And a professional assassin is better?”
Justin lifted his arm to glare at Gabriel for a moment before dropping it in place. Only the barest hint of a smile teased the corner of Gabriel’s lips, but his face was otherwise expressionless. “Yes.” His other hand fisted at his side. “A professional, while harder to kill and evade, wouldn’t have gone in, guns blazing, ready to sort things out after everyone was dead. A professional understands the importance of information, information you can only get from a live captive. Fucking amateurs.”
“So, whoever hired the professionals to go after the doctor realized after the contract was up that they still didn’t have what they wanted, so they went cheap, hired some local gang members to keep an eye on the house,” Gabriel filled in.
Justin fought a shiver that rose up when Gabriel’s fingers ghosted along part of his naked skin that hadn’t been numbed by the local anesthetic. Goose bumps broke out across his arms and one nipple tightened. It was the cold of the room. Definitely the cold and not the man whose strong hands were meticulously piecing him together.
Had it really been so long ago since he’d enjoyed a night of hot, meaningless sex that he found himself attracted to Gabriel Prescott?
Well, other than the fact that the man was ridiculously handsome—even more so with the hidden tattoos—Justin wasn’t entirely sure that Gabriel wouldn’t kill him when this job was over.
Was it just restlessness that was drawing him to Gabriel? Getting shot was the first bit of action, the first thrill he’d had on the job in too fucking long. That couldn’t be a good sign.
“You okay?” Gabriel asked, snapping him out of his aimless train of thought.
“Yeah.” Justin lifted his arm up, squinting against the bright light to see Gabriel now holding the penlight between his lips as he worked. “What were we talking about?”
“The fact that you’ve got a hard-on for getting shot,” Gabriel replied, still holding the light between his perfectly white, straight teeth.
Justin marveled at the man’s ability to speak so clearly with the light in his mouth before the words finally sunk in. He jerked upright as if to look at his crotch to make sure that he really didn’t, but Gabriel’s snicker stopped him, and he settled with his arm over his eyes. “Fucker,” he muttered. “You don’t mess with someone when they’re drugged to the gills. It’s not nice.”
“Never claimed to be nice,” Gabriel said, his voice sounding farther away. Justin could hear him rummaging through the kit. When he spoke again, his hands were back on Justin’s skin, a reassuring pressure. “Hiring the locals was a mistake. Makes you think the money behind this is likely to make more mistakes that we could work to our advantage.”
“True.”
“Think there’s any financial benefit for us if we track down the money?”
Justin gave a little shrug of his shoulder. “Could save some lives.”
“Hmm.”
“What?” Justin snapped. He really wanted to lift his arm to look at Gabriel, but he was too damn tired.
“Marilyn warned me that this wasn’t just about the money for you.”
Justin shoved aside the overwhelming fatigue and dropped his arm onto the bed so he could glare at Gabriel. “And what the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“That I am in it for the money and only that. If we can catch the bastard that killed the two researchers along the way, fine. But I’m not jeopardizing the final paycheck if it’s not included in the job.”
“Whatever,” he said with a roll of his eyes. There was no point in getting into it. It was the kind of attitude he’d expected from Gabriel.
For the assassin, this was business. That was how it worked for them.
But Justin knew this was his chance at redemption, the only way of ever looking at himself in the mirror again.
“Am I ready to go back in, coach?” Justin asked when Gabriel stepped away from him. There was no missing the slurring of his words. His eyes were closed, and in truth he was too
tired to move. The painkillers had kicked in full force, and it felt as if his whole body was swimming. Cold air chilled his bare skin, but even that couldn’t get him to move from where he was stretched across the bed. He just wanted to sleep for several hours.
“Soon. Sleep.”
“But—”
“You’ve lost a good amount of blood, and your body is recovering from an injury. Sleep. I’ll keep watch.”
“I…I…need to…go,” he murmured. He took a deep breath and slowly released it. Every muscle in his body felt heavy, falling into a relaxed state. He could feel Gabriel untying one shoe and then the other before pulling them off. The heavy thumps caused him to jerk, but he couldn’t open his eyes.
“You don’t need to go anywhere.” Gabriel’s words were soft, almost a caress in the darkness. Gentle fingers threaded through his hair, moving it away from his forehead, and Justin sighed. “You’re safe.”